Primordial Era: The Three Senior Brothers of the Taiqing Clan

Chen Qing sat cross-legged in the purple chaos, his body surrounded by golden light and dark purple chaotic energy, like an ancient god sleeping in the depths of chaos.

His face was calm, his brows slightly relaxed, but the turmoil in his heart was far from over.

"Devouring"... A terrifying being that feeds on the world, a monster personally sealed by Pangu. From the information obtained from that dark golden giant gate, the sealing method left by Pangu was extremely complex, and it would be almost impossible for him to fully execute it by himself.

However, the message also mentioned that if the seal has cracked, the exact location of the Ruins can be found by sensing the aura emanating from the crack.

Chen Qing slowly opened his eyes, and a golden light flashed in his pupils.

He stood up and looked toward the direction where the purple chaos "flowed." That area was like an unfathomable undercurrent, constantly pulling the chaotic energy beneath his feet toward some unknown shore.

"The Ruins of Return... are in that direction," Chen Qing murmured to himself. "Pangu said that the seal is not eternal. In that case, I must go and take a look."

If the seal remains intact, then one worry will be relieved. If cracks have already appeared... then we cannot stand idly by.

He moved swiftly, flying towards the direction where the purple chaos "flowed".

The closer you get, the stronger the suction becomes. The chaotic airflow no longer rotates slowly, but begins to form visible vortices, like countless tiny whirlpools slowly turning in the void, converging into a continuous pulling force.

Chen Qing slowed down and carefully navigated through the eddies.

He could sense that he was approaching some extremely ancient and colossal being, one that was not like an ordinary chaotic region, but more like the "pulse" of some enormous creature. With each breath, the chaotic air currents throughout the entire region rose and fell accordingly.

After flying for an unknown amount of time, the purple chaos before them suddenly darkened, as if its light had been obscured by an invisible black curtain.

Chen Qing stopped and looked up, only to see that the void in front of him was shrouded in a bottomless darkness.

The darkness was not ordinary black, but had a viscous texture, like solidified ink suspended in the void.

There was no light, no chaotic energy, and even sound had completely vanished in the darkness. It was like an abyss forgotten for countless years, a place even chaos itself deliberately avoided.

"This is the Ruins of Return..." Chen Qing murmured.

He could sense that something was indeed sleeping in that darkness.

The slumber was incredibly deep, as if it hadn't awakened for countless years, yet even in its slumber, it exuded a chilling aura. That aura was greedy and vast, like an abyss that could never be filled.

Chen Qing stood at the edge of the Ruins of Return, remaining silent for a long time.

The Pangu Sealing Method mentions a step: if the seal is intact, there should be residual fluctuations of the sealing power at the edge of the Ruins, silently guarding this darkness like sentinels.

If cracks appear in the seal, the aura of "devouring" will seep out from the edge of the Ruins. This aura is different from that of chaos and carries an instinct of "devouring".

He extended his divine sense and carefully touched the edge of the Ruins of Return. After a moment, his expression darkened slightly. The residual sealing power at the edge of the Ruins of Return was indeed still there, but it was significantly weaker than described in the information left by Pangu.

Those sealing forces are like rocks whose edges have been worn away by time; they still exist, but have lost their former sharpness.

Even more worryingly, in the area closest to darkness, he vaguely sensed a power that did not belong to chaos or the seal.

That aura was extremely faint, like a wisp of smoke in the night, yet it carried an indescribable "desire"—the aura of "devouring".

"The seal has indeed loosened," Chen Qing said in a deep voice. "Although it hasn't completely broken, extremely fine cracks have appeared. If left unchecked, it will eventually collapse completely after who knows how many years."

He pondered for a moment, his gaze settling on the darkness. Although he possessed the sealing techniques left behind by Pangu, it was virtually impossible for one person to reinforce a seal of that scale.

The seal was set up with the power of Pangu at its core. Even though his strength has greatly improved now, he is still far from reaching the level of Pangu back then.

But he could do what he could. For example, he could set up a temporary seal at the crack in the seal to slow down the penetration of the "devouring" power. In this way, he could at least buy more time for the Primordial World.

He took out several Chaos Stones collected from the purple chaos, condensed a wisp of sealing technique into Dao patterns, and infused them one by one into the stones.

The raw stones emitted a golden light in his hands, and Dao patterns flowed endlessly on their surface, gradually forming a miniature sealing array.

He carefully approached the edge of the Ruins and placed the raw stones around the crack. The moment the stones fell, golden light spread out like ripples, temporarily sealing the crack.

The faint aura of "devouring" quickly dissipated under the golden light, and the edge of the Ruins returned to calm.

Chen Qing let out a long breath, put away the remaining raw stones, and took a few steps back.

Although the temporary seal was not as indestructible as the seal laid down by Pangu, it could at least last for a considerable period of time.

As long as he can find a more thorough solution during this period, he will not have returned empty-handed.

He took one last look at the bottomless darkness, then turned and left Guixu.

The man in black robes is still alive, the threat from the Demon God Realm has not been completely eliminated, and there are still countless things he needs to digest and comprehend in the information left by Pangu. He cannot linger here for too long.

As he passed through the swirling purple chaos and returned to the gray chaos region, he felt as if he had awakened from an ancient and heavy dream. The profound information from Pangu weighed heavily on his Dao foundation, causing him to undergo subtle transformations every moment.

He didn't stop and continued flying towards the primordial wilderness.

On his way back, he pondered repeatedly the three marks left by Pangu. He had obtained the first mark, and his complete understanding of the Dao of Creation was now slowly taking root and sprouting within his inner world.

Having obtained the second mark, although the sealing technique was temporarily unusable, it made him aware of the existence and threat of "Devouring".

Only the third mark—Pangu's voice stopped abruptly after he said "the third mark."

What exactly is the third mark? What was Pangu originally going to say? Why did he stop halfway through?

Chen Qing vaguely felt that that was the most crucial part of the whole matter.

Unfortunately, Pangu left behind only a wisp of remnant consciousness, not a complete one. Perhaps even Pangu himself could not guarantee that the information would be fully transmitted to those who came after him.

He could only keep that question to himself and wait for the right opportunity to find the answer later.

Passing through the gray chaos, through the outer edge of the purple chaos, and through the "empty space" where the void stele was located, the primordial light finally reappeared in his sight.

That dazzling world was like a bright pearl embedded in chaos, radiating a warm and familiar light.

Chen Qing sped up and flew towards the light.

He landed on the edge of Penglai Immortal Island. Xuanming stood before the main hall, his white hair fluttering gently in the wind, his gaze fixed on the chaos, as if he had known all along that he would return at this moment.

"You're back." Xuanming's voice was calm, yet carried a hint of relief.

Chen Qing nodded: "You're back."

He didn't rush to recount what he had seen and heard along the way, but instead sat down on the stone bench next to Xuanming.

He needed to calm his thoughts before he could sort out what he had seen and heard in that chaotic depths and then tell her about it.

Xuanming didn't urge him. She simply sat quietly beside him, handed him a cup of warm tea, and gazed at the sea in the distance, which shimmered with golden light in the setting sun.

Chen Qing sat on the stone bench, holding a cup of warm tea in his hands. After a moment of silence, he slowly spoke: "This trip to Chaos has been far more fruitful than I imagined."

Xuanming didn't respond, but listened quietly. She knew that Chen Qing needed a complete account to sort out those distant experiences.

Chen Qing put down his teacup and looked out at the sea, as if he could see the dark golden gate and the unfathomable darkness deep in the chaos through the shimmering waves.

"I met Pangu's disciples."

His voice was steady and clear. "Although it was just a wisp of remnant memory, he told me that before Pangu created the world, he traveled through the chaos for a long time, visited countless places, and even took in several disciples."

Xuanming raised an eyebrow slightly: "Pangu's disciple?"

"Yes. He said he was Pangu's youngest disciple and the only one who stayed to accompany Pangu to the end."

When Pangu created the world, he was too close and was caught in the aftershocks, his soul and spirit annihilated, leaving only a skeleton and a wisp of remnant will, waiting in the depths of chaos for countless years.

Chen Qing paused, as if recalling the scene in front of the gray stone tablet: "I continued to walk in the direction he pointed out, passed through the gray chaotic area, and entered a purple chaotic area."

There was a door... a colossal, dark golden door, its frame etched with patterns left by Pangu.

Xuanming's eyes brightened slightly for a moment: "What's inside the door?"

"The three marks left by Pangu." Chen Qing held up three fingers. "The first one is his complete understanding of the Dao of Creation. It is contained in the Pangu Dao Foundation, but the Dao Foundation has limited capacity and cannot contain it all. What is inside that door is the complete one."

"The second method is to seal a monster called 'Devouring.' Pangu said that the monster fed on the world and was suppressed by him in a place called 'Return to the Void' deep in the chaos. But the seal is not eternal and will eventually loosen."

Xuanming's brows furrowed slowly: "Feeding on the world... what kind of being is that?"

"I don't know." Chen Qing shook his head. "Pangu's lingering thoughts only contain the method of sealing, without a detailed description of the monster's origin."

But I've felt its presence at the edge of the Ruins, and that feeling... was like facing a bottomless abyss.

He paused for a moment, then continued, "The third mark, Pangu didn't finish speaking about it. His lingering will suddenly stopped when he mentioned 'the third mark.' I don't know what it is, nor do I know why he didn't finish."

The air was still for a moment, broken only by the distant rumble of the ocean waves, like the gentle breath of the earth. Xuanming remained silent for a while before asking, "How is Guixu now?"

Chen Qing's expression darkened slightly: "The seal is still there, but it has loosened. The sealing power at the edge of the Ruins is much weaker than I expected, and a very faint aura of 'devouring' has already seeped out."

I used a temporary sealing technique extracted from the Pangu sealing method to set up a seal, sealing the crack, but that was just a delaying tactic.

To completely solve the problem, a more thorough solution is needed.

Xuanming nodded slightly and didn't press the matter further. She knew that, given Chen Qing's personality, once he learned of the existence and threat of the Ruins of Return, he would definitely not stand idly by.

However, he had just returned and needed time to digest the information left by Pangu and also needed time to rest.

"Rest first." Xuanming stood up, flicked his sleeves, and said, "It's not too late to make plans after you've fully grasped those insights."

Chen Qing responded, but did not get up immediately. He sat on the stone bench, gazing at the sea in the distance that shimmered silver in the moonlight, his mind replaying the abruptly ended voice from Pangu's lingering thoughts.

The unfinished "third mark" was like a fine thorn, always stuck deep in his consciousness, making it difficult for him to truly calm down.

The next morning, the news spread throughout the primordial world. The news that Chen Qing had returned from the depths of chaos, bringing back relics of Pangu, spread rapidly among various forces like a spring breeze across a lake.

Although Chen Qing did not disclose the specific contents of Pangu's relics, the mere phrase "the mark left by Pangu" was enough to shock countless people.

On Shouyang Mountain, Laozi put down his alchemy furnace. After listening to the message Chen Qing sent through the communication talisman, he stroked his beard, remained silent for a long time, and only said one sentence: "Qing'er, you've worked hard. First, stabilize your cultivation level. There's no need to rush."

In the Kunlun Mountains, Yuanshi Tianzun also received a message from Chen Qing.

He sat upright in the main hall of the Jade Void Palace, reading the information in the communication talisman twice. He nodded slightly, his expression unchanged, but the hand holding the talisman tightened slightly for a moment.

On Jin'ao Island, the Tongtian Sect Leader reacted very directly: "Excellent! I knew this kid was destined for great things! He even managed to find something left behind by the Father God deep within the Chaos; his luck is unmatched!"

In Nuwa's palace, Nuwa was pruning the branches and leaves of the five-colored spiritual plant. When the maid brought her a message talisman, she only glanced at it slightly, listened, and then continued pruning, but the corners of her mouth unconsciously curled up slightly for a moment.

On Mount Sumeru in the West, Jieyin and Zhunti sat facing each other, a communication talisman floating between them. Jieyin remained silent for a moment, then murmured Buddhist prayers, saying, "The opportunity deep within chaos has ultimately been seized by him. This boy's fortune is probably beyond our reach."

Zhunti didn't reply, but just stared at the communication talisman with a complicated expression.

On Penglai Immortal Island, Chen Qing ignored the discussions outside. He sat cross-legged deep in the main hall, still immersed in the process of integrating with the Dao of Pangu's Creation.

The insights gained from that dark golden gate flowed and churned within his Dao foundation like lava, and with each additional integration, his control over his inner world deepened.

The Pangu Dao Foundation has almost completely merged into the core of the world, and now it is only one last bit away from being completely integrated.

The seclusion lasted a long time, so long that spring turned to autumn, peach blossoms bloomed and faded, and the tides rose and fell. On this day, when the last ray of light from the Great Dao of Pangu completely merged into his inner world, Chen Qing slowly opened his eyes.

His gaze was more profound than ever before, as if he could see to the very end of the world with a single glance.

He stood up and walked out from the depths of the main hall. Xuanming stood by the island, the sea breeze gently caressing her white hair.

She seemed to have gotten used to waiting for him here. Every time he came out of seclusion, the first thing he saw was that white figure standing under the tree.

"Is it all melted?" Xuanming asked.

Chen Qing nodded: "It's melted."

He didn't say much, but Xuanming noticed that his aura was more stable than before. That stability wasn't a calm that concealed his sharpness, but a natural and harmonious balance.

Xuanming nodded slightly: "And what's next?"

Chen Qing gazed at the distant sea, his eyes distant: "Let's invite the Dao Ancestor out first. This matter shouldn't be handled by us in private."